


At the Shore

by alylynn122



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: Afterlife, Character Death, Death, F/M, Heaven, Hurt/Comfort, Lots and Lots of Death, Mass Effect 3, Oneshot, Romance, Shepard chose red, beam, but none that aren't canon, starbrat - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-25
Updated: 2016-03-25
Packaged: 2018-05-28 21:55:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,299
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6346984
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alylynn122/pseuds/alylynn122
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Thane had said it, and he meant it. But he had never realized how hard the wait would be.</p><p>Spoilers for Mass Effect 3.</p>
            </blockquote>





	At the Shore

Thane watched with anticipation as Shepard stood before the holographic child, trembling with pain and exhaustion. She was so close to the sea, he was sure she could hear the waves. But she needed to choose, first. She needed to finish what she had started. Three choices sat before her, and he could feel her indecision. She was fading fast. The pain flowed through him at the same time it pulsed through her, though his was but a whisper when compared to the tsunami of agony that was close to consuming her. She was fading- fast. The human admiral had pushed and pushed her, and in the end, she would die following his orders. Her orders had simply been to destroy the Reapers, and being a soldier down to her last breath, Thane watched as his siha began firing her gun. Each blast brought her a step closer, so tauntingly close and yet so far. Sweat dripped down her face, her teeth gritted against the torrent of fire racing through her limbs. Tears streamed down her face. 

She had only a few fleeting seconds left.   
  
Her body went out in a fiery blast as the world exploded around her. Thane watched her flaming corpse crumple to the ground, helplessly writhing until at last, her agony ended. Her spirit was in the sea now, and all he could do was wait helplessly for her to find her way to shore.   
  
Shepard felt the world swirling around her. Slowly, she opened her eyes to find herself floating weightlessly in the depths of an ocean. Despite not having any air, she didn't feel any pressure in her lungs. After years of heavy responsibility burdening her shoulders, the cool water taking the weight of her limbs was a welcome feeling. She didn't remember anything beyond seeing a blast of orange igniting around her. She didn't know how she had gotten here, but for a brief moment, all she wanted was to let go; letting herself sink into the depths, succumbing to the darkness as the oxygen drained from her body and she was crushed by the soothing force of the water around her. Drowning used to haunt her nightmares as a child, but she was so tired. Now, all she could think was that she would rather go out in water's cool embrace than in fire's.   
  
She closed her heavy eyes for a moment, feeling herself drift deeper but not being able to find any reason to care.   
  
But something tugged at her. A disembodied voice, whispering in her ear from so long ago.   
  
_Go and finish it._  
  
She had to see it through, had to make sure she kept her promise. For Thane.   
  
It hurt when she moved her limbs. Agony surged through her blood with every push closer to the surface. Her pores burned, her eyes stung. The pain overwhelmed her, and she fought against it, kept pushing against the currents that tried to lull her back to the depths.   
  
_I will be waiting for you at the shore._  
  
Shepard kicked with everything she had, grinding her teeth through the torment, but she was so, so tired, and the lights dancing atop the waters seemed so, so far away. Slowly, her frantic movements gave way to exhaustion. No matter how much she struggled, the lights only got further and further away. She was close, she could feel it, could smell the smoke. But the lights only flickered tauntingly as she was pulled back into the navy abyss spreading out below her.   
  
_I'm sorry, Thane_ , she thought as darkness enveloped her, _I tried._    
  
Bodies had been washing up onto the shore in droves for months, now. The victims of the Reapers numbered in billions, and with all the lives lost in the final push, the shores were full of impatient onlookers seeking a glimpse of their lost loved ones.   
  
At first, Thane had joined the crowd in their frantic search, overturning every body that washed ashore, seeking the shape of her back, the brown of her hair amongst the people that littered the beach. But with each face that wasn't Shepard's, each body that was greeted by another's cries of relief, Thane began to despair. He couldn't bring himself to look down on Earth, not without her by his side. Instead, he contented himself with watching Kolyat, who had managed to escape the Citadel before it had been relocated. Now on Thessia, his son was assisting with the rebuilding of asari culture beside a young asari woman that had peaked his interest. Despite falling into a rough patch after his father's death, Kolyat had stuck with Captain Bailey, and was doing good work in the memory of his parents.   
  
When he wasn't watching Kolyat, Thane would walk the curve of the shore on the opposite side of the island, sobering in the quiet. He avoided the recieving shore now, despising seeing the look on the faces of people who had no one to greet them. They always found peace, once they realized what had happened, but the first glimpse of the afterlife wasn't easy on anyone, and Thane had seen enough suffering.   
  
It had been days since he had watched his siha take her last shuddering breath. With most that had gone to the sea, they found their way to the shore within a day. His heart ached to think of Shepard wasting away in the ruins of the Citadel, barely clinging to life. She had walked the cusp of the shore before, and he had seen her agony at being torn from it once already. Of all people, she deserved peace.   
  
He watched the cerulean waves lap at the white sand, briefly wondering if he should force himself to check Earth, to try and find her, no matter how much he couldn't stand to see it.   
  
It was then that he saw the flash of brown against the sand. The currents had deposited a body on the beach, far from the others. Her long brown hair floated in a small pool around her head, a stark contrast to her white skin. Thane felt his breath catch in his throat, coaxing his legs into a run as he hurried to her, recognizing the curve of her jaw and slope of her nose.   
  
He threw himself into the surf at his feet, scooping her up into his arms as joyous tears poured from his eyes. Her skin was creamy white under his green scales, and for the first time, he was able to see what had laid behind the scars that had speckled her face. She had always been beautiful, but now, laying in his arms, he could see her even more clearly for the angel she was.   
  
"Siha," he gasped, bringing his lips to hers as she felt her eyelashes flutter open against his cheeks. A hand came up to stroke his face, soft without the callouses and work-hardened palms. Disbelief resonated through her, her fingers trembling as they glossed over his frills. Exhaustion coated her movements, causing Thane to laugh. He should have known, should have foreseen how laboriously she would fight against the depths. Commander Shepard would never go without a fight.   
  
"Thane," she breathed when he finally pulled his lips away from hers to look into her eyes. She too, was crying, something he had only seen her do after he had already departed from his body.   
  
"I told you I would wait for you, siha. Welcome home," he sighed, gently cradling her head in his hand as he used his thumb to brush away her tears. She clung to him desperately as she choked out a sob, a wide smile growing across her cheeks. For the first time in years, she felt completely and wholly happy.   
  
_Welcome home._  
  



End file.
